Hooks - choice and supplier

[James Laraway]

So i was wondering what peoples hook preferences are for trout fly tying  and where do they get them ?

I normally just go for Kamasan B170s for my wets and the B100N hooks are lovely grub hooks . Both of them i get from an ebay supplier called fishteaserflies who has always proved to be excellent and a really quick service

What do you use and where do you get them from ?

[John Wastle]

Much the same as you James. B170, B175, B160 and B100 cover almost all my requirements and I just crush the barbs. B175s for most of my wets and lures, the rest for dries, nymphs, spiders etc. The B160 (one size up)  is great for spiders and wee muddlers.

I use the same supplier as you, very reliable. He also does a wide range of body materials incuding boosted straggle fritz that look great on loch style wets and streamers.

[James Laraway]

If I want heavier I do like the b175 it has to be said.....

Maybe I'm a luddite but I'm just not a barbless person, although I do like the look of some of the barbless hooks on the market

I'll crush the barbs if on a catch and release commercial fishery but otherwise I just stay barbed .

I dread the thought of hooking a big wild brown and loosing it cos I'm on barbless. Crushed is a good medium as that little bump leftover would give me more confidence..

[Robert MacDonald-Lewis]

Most of the time I use barbless hooks, typically sticking with the Fulling Mill range. They are good, consistent quality and cover most bases. Usually order direct, and they are pretty quick but not always as quick as the likes of Lakeland.

I do like Kamasan B120's for muddlers though.

[Sandy Nelson]

I'm firmly in the Fulling Mill camp these days. I'm very picky about hooks and only use barbless (I prefer not to crush barbs as it can weaken a hook)
The FM5050/55 and FM5060/65 are the two I use for just about everything as can be spotted from my fly pages.
I used to use Daiichi D900's for Nymphs and emergers but you can't get them anymore, the FM5060 has proven to be a good alternative.
The FM5055 is my only choice for spiders and dries. I tend to order direct or from whoever has stock. They are basically the only two hooks I use on the river these days, as they don't straighten out and I can get them bronzed instead of black.

I've not tied any loch style or rainbow oriented flies for a few years but was always a big fan of Kamasan B175's for anything subsurface, I've not looked for a good barbless alternative.
I also liked the Jardine living nymph grub hooks for Buzzers, especially the red ones.

[Robert MacDonald-Lewis]

Fulling Mill Comp Heavyweight (FM50 90 ) is a barbless dead ringer for the B175.  If you are not keen on the staight point, then the Heavyweight Champ (FM 50 00) has an upturned point but slightly shorter shank length.

It is a shame that soome of the curved hooks are only anailable in black, would be nice to have bronezed options.

[Neil Relph]

I prefer Partridge and Hanak hooks now. The Partridge L3AS Spider hooks are good, as are the D4AY Streamer hooks. Hanak jig hooks are excellent, the best I've found.

For Hanak hooks, I've started using Chuck and Duck https://chucknduckflytying.com - decent stock, decent postage rates and fast shipping. Their dubbings are also very good.

[Allan Liddle]

No surprise for me; Partridge or Sprite 

Partridge have a superb range of barbless and i feel the best are the SUD2 (lighter wire dry), SUD3 (general purpose slightly heavier dry / light wet), SUD4 (heavier wet, B175 weight), the Wide Gape Jig (superb) and the K4AY-SE curved heavy dry / GP nymph.  The Grab Pupae (heavier nymph) is pretty good as well.

Barbed?  L5A Dry Fly Supreme, G3A Sproat and the G3A/L Wet Fly Supreme are brilliant as is the K14A Emerger

Or Sprite?
Competition Barbless, S2100 buzzer (a barbless version of the Kamasan B100), Wide Gape Jig and General Purpose dry (all Sprite range barbless hook codes start with S2 and the next three numbers correspond to the equivalent in Kamasan  .  The barbed hook codes start S1 and same regarding Kamasan equivalent on the last three numbers)
If you fish for sea trout and bass then the Sprite Salt Water Single is superb.

All the above hooks can be bought direct from www.spritefishing.com (Sprite owned by Partridge of Reading and, apart from the Saltwater Single, all the trout hooks are sold in packs of 50. Partridge hooks are regarded a better hook and sold in 25 for trout yins).

[Bryan McDonald]

Hooks, I started with Kamasan B175s, that was back when Davy McPhail would use them on his videos.
I still use them most of the time, but I have diversified in to Fullingmill and a a few others, partridge and others.
Couple of yeas ago I did buy a job lot of vintage hooks, Allcocks and Edgar Sealey etc.
I have just got back into fly tying after a bit of a break, so hope to have some pics up here soon.
So my hooks are bought from all over, even have some course fishing hooks for fly tying, those Drennan hooks are good, if they can hold barbell and large chub and pike, they will do well for trout.
Another thing I have had a thought on is the hook lengths for float fishing etc, comes with a snelled hook and line already on it, always wanted to experiment with that. I have seen old fishing flies on hook lengths.
If I pass a fishing tackle shop, I always go in and purchase something, box of hooks usually, and sometimes more.